The National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP) called the proposal of vice-presidential aspirant Sara Duterte-Carpio's to require military service for all young Filipinos "unnecessary."
In a statement, NUSP criticized Duterte's proposal, saying it's "delusional, unnecessary, fascistic, and devoid of grasping the reality experienced by the Filipino people" amid the "tribulating times."
"Inaccessible education, economic inequality, and widespread injustices are only some of the most prominent problems our country is facing," NUSP stressed.
"A candidate aiming to impose forced military service when they become a leader is a clear sign of what the future may bring: another person in power adamant on ignoring the country's struggles," the group underscored, lamenting that mandatory Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) may "bring more harm than good."
NUSP urged leaders of the country to instead push to instill a nationalistic, scientific, and most oriented education if "they genuinely care about the youth's social participation and national consciousness."
"The youth must be empowered to have the choice on how they see fir to serve the people of their country, they should be educated with civic consciousness rather than blind obedience, and peacebuilding rather than violence," it concluded.
Earlier, Duterte said if she wins, she would push to make military service mandatory for all Filipinos once they turn 18.
The ROTC is a college program designed to train civilians in the rudiments of military service in order to produce capable Armed Forces of the Philippines reservists.
It was made optional in 2002 following the death of Mark Chua, a University of Sto. Tomas Student. He was allegedly slain by course officers after exposing the corruption in the university's ROTC program.
READ MORE: Youth group opposes Sara Duterte's mandatory military service proposal